Modernization of the Provincial Offences Act : Modernisation de la Loi sur les infractions provinciales : rapport final

The mandate of the LCO is to recommend law reform measures to enhance the legal system’s relevance, effectiveness and accessibility; improve the administration of justice through the clarification and simplification of the law; consider the use of technology to enhance access to justice; stimulate critical legal debate; and support scholarly research. [...] The POA project took as its starting point a refashioning of the statute to reflect the developments that have occurred since it was enacted 30 years ago, including the impact of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, changes to the Criminal Code, the considerable increase in fines for certain offences, the importance of new technologies and the official recognition of paralegals, among them [...] Nor has there been a review to consider the impact of significant developments such as the enactment of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the transfer of prosecution and court administration of POA matters from the Province to municipalities, significantly increased penalties for many offences, and the increased use of administrative monetary penalties to enforce regulatory standards. [...] The Purpose of the POA and a Proposed New Structure Section 2 of the POA states that the statute’s purpose is “to replace the summary conviction procedure for the prosecution of provincial offences…with a procedure that reflects the distinction between provincial offences and criminal offences.” The POA’s underlying objectives were to establish a fair and efficient method of resolving provincial o [...] There does not appear to be authority to deny bail for the protection and safety of the public, leading to the anomaly that a police officer has the authority to detain a defendant to prevent the continuation or repetition of an offence or the commission of another offence, but a justice does not have the authority to deny bail where there is evidence of a real threat to the safety of the public,